Postdoctoral Fellow; PREP

PREP Research Associate – CHIPS Funded Project

This position is part of the National Institute of Standards (NIST) Professional Research Experience (PREP) program. Employees in this role will perform technical work that underpins the scientific research of the collaboration.

Reliability Testing and Failure Analysis for Advanced Semiconductor Packaging

The Infrastructure Materials Group at the National Institute of Standards and Technology seeks a researcher with demonstrated knowledge of reliability testing and failure analysis for advanced semiconductor packaging, with strength in polymeric materials and multilayer interfacial mechanics relevant to CHIPS applications. The successful candidate will integrate reliability modeling with experimental techniques to investigate how environmental stressors accelerate aging, property degradation, and failure mechanisms in complex package architectures.

The position requires expertise in mechanical characterization of thin-film and multilayer interfaces, including adhesion and failure onset, as well as a deep understanding of polymer structure-property relationships and failure analysis.

If selected, the researcher will play a significant role in NIST projects focused on reliability testing and failure analysis for advanced packaging. Collaborating with NIST staff and external partners, the researcher will design and execute experimental research to assess the impact of stress on the mechanical and thermal properties of polymeric materials and interfaces used in advanced packages. The research will aim to identify and quantify failure mechanisms, such as interfacial delamination, cohesive cracking, and fatigue damage, and generate high‑quality datasets for model calibration and validation.

These datasets will, in turn, inform the development of more accurate long‑term reliability prediction frameworks.

• Develop and validate new test methods for multilayer adhesion in advanced packaging assemblies.
• Characterize the thermal and mechanical properties of materials and interfaces before, during, and after accelerated aging.
• Conduct in‑situ environmental digital image correlation (DIC) to quantify package/assembly deformation during thermal cycling.
• Develop advanced failure‑analysis methods using microscopic and X‑ray‑based techniques for complex package structures.
• Perform finite element analysis to simulate package deformation/warpage under thermo‑mechanical loading, informing the development of more accurate reliability models.
• Create comprehensive datasets of material and interface properties, both pre‑ and post‑aging, to support reliability modeling.
• Communicate results through conference presentations, peer‑reviewed publications, and technical reports.

• Live in the United States.
• Ph.D. in Materials Science, Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Physics, Chemical Engineering, or Chemistry.
• Strong oral and written communication skills.
• Experience in polymeric thin film adhesion.
• Experience in advanced semiconductor packaging is preferred.
• U.S. citizenship is preferred.

The referenced salary range represents the minimum and maximum salaries for this position and is based on Johns Hopkins University's good faith belief at the time of posting. The actual compensation offered to the selected candidate may vary and will ultimately depend on multiple factors.

Johns Hopkins offers a total rewards package that supports employees’ health, life, career and retirement.

Johns Hopkins University is committed to equal opportunity for its faculty, staff, and students. The university does not discriminate on the basis of sex, gender, marital status, pregnancy, race, color, ethnicity, national origin, age, disability, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, veteran status or other legally protected characteristic.

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